


Eclectic Past and Present

by xlxharlequinxlx



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-04-24
Packaged: 2020-01-23 10:26:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18547915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xlxharlequinxlx/pseuds/xlxharlequinxlx
Summary: A collection of sorts.  Mostly drabbles following the events of the story.The apprentice is for the most part gender neutral, no pronouns used.  The rest is left to your imagination.  Lemony, but not extremely explicit.





	1. Chapter 1

"Julian?"

 "Hmm...?"  His voice is nothing more than a deep rumble in his chest.  His arms are looped around your waist as you straddle him in the bath.  The sheer material of the robes you both wear leaves very little to the imagination as you're pressed up against him.  Your forehead rests in the juncture of his shoulder and neck, your eyes closed as you struggle to voice the thoughts swirling in your head.  After his... death and journey to see the hanged man there were still so many answers that you didn't get...  You didn't really have time to dwell on these things right now, but the quiet nagging in the back of your mind continued to grow.  Why did it matter?  It shouldn't, and yet you were still left struggling to make sense of your past life and the one you were living now.

 "Can I-... can I ask you something?"  Your eyes catch his as you shift back, gazing shyly up at him through your lashes.

 "Of course, my love, anything," he replies with a grin, although his expression falters when he reads the uncertainty on your face.  "Is everything alright?  Are you okay?"  His hold on you tightens ever so slightly.

 Seeing his concern for you almost stops you, it's almost enough to make you brush off any insecurities you may have, and yet...  You wanted to know.   

 "Why didn't you want your memories of me?"  You whisper, your voice a fraction away from shattering under the weight of your question.  You can feel it as his breath hitches in his chest.

 "Darling... I-" He trails off, his arms pulling you impossibly closer.  He holds you as if he's afraid you'll slip away like water through his fingers if he risks letting you go.  "I couldn't bear it," his tone is a tormented whisper as he almost crushes you within his embrace.  You are completely enveloped in him, feeling his lips tremble against your temple.  "I- I let you down...  By the time I realized what had happened to you..."

 You feel the shaking in his shoulders as he tries to keep it together, his breath ruffling your hair as he scoffs sadly.

 "What kind of doctor can't even save his own apprentice?"

 "Julian," you whisper his name, attempting to pull back to meet his gaze, but he doesn't let you.  His tears wet your cheeks as he moves to bury his face in your damp hair.

 "I could have handled it... All the death... all of the loss.  I would have survived it all if I had known you would still be there waiting for me," his voice falters.  

 "We talked about this... You can't save everyone," you say, trying to comfort him.

 "Maybe not, but... I should have been there for you.  I don't think you understand how important you were... _are_ to me.  I was irresponsible back then... I was so focused on finding a cure that I- I basically abandoned you," he weeps.  "Before we started working together I didn't have any semblance of a future for myself.  It was so easy to be around you.  I wanted to find a cure for the plague, but I wanted to continue to run the clinic with you.  I never got the chance to tell you... that what I wanted more than anything was to continue to work with you, and to have you near.  When I knew that I had lost you... something... just snapped, and I-I was so desperate.  I did things that I'm not proud of... I sought comfort wherever I could get it, and I mean that quite literally."

 "I think I'm starting to understand," you said, not wanting him to continue to torture himself.  "It was my choice Ilya, you weren't responsible for protecting me."

 Julian takes a shuddering breath at your words, still unable to fathom how you are able to forgive him so freely.

 "...But I was responsible, _you were mine_...  Darling, I didn't _want_ to forget you, but I did end up exchanging some of my most painful memories.  They were the ones I couldn't stand to live with... A missed opportunity, but back then I was always doing that... I didn't realize that what little I had left of you would be lost to me as well."  He steels his resolve to finish his explanation.  "Lucio didn't know it at the time... I- Even after I was infected with the plague by his hands...  All I could think about was making sure what happened to you, never happened to anyone else." he explains.  "I was pretty delusional there at the end and... even though I knew you were gone I still... I dreamed of you in what I now realize is the hanged man's realm.  You never turned to look at me, no matter how I tried.  You were always just out of reach, but maybe... maybe you were leading me on...  I had thought it fitting that I would never see your face again.  I didn't deserve to..."

 "You can't keep blaming yourself, you did what you had to do and I'm here now... I just... I'm sorry- I-" guilt cripples anything else you're about to say.  With his memories restored, you could see how excruciating it was for him to have to tell you all of that.  He had already been through so much.  You wondered if he would ever be able to forgive himself for not being able to prevent your death, but you knew you wouldn't be able to forgive yourself for breaking his heart again by asking him to relive it.  His heart that had already been through so much pain...

 "Please, don't apologize," Julian says, finally easing his hold on you enough to be able to meet your eyes, his hands gently grazing up and down your back.  "You deserved an explanation."

 You almost can't stand the way he's looking at you right now, his brow furrowed and his eyes haunted.  Still, beneath it all you can see his care and devotion for you shining through. You feel your heart splintering apart, wanting nothing more than to see him smiling again as your hands come to cradle his cheeks.  Even seated like this, he is still several inches taller than you, forcing you to tilt his head down to meet your lips.  He leans forward even more; his arms secure around your back as your lips meld together muffling your sounds of longing.

 "I'm never leaving you again," Julian whispers against your lips when you finally pull apart to catch your breath, a blush creeping up his neck all the way to the tips of his ears.  "Th-that is... if you'll have me."  His fingers trail gently up your spine and tangle in the hair at the nape of your neck, your foreheads touching.  "I meant what I said when we were dancing. I want to give you everything, whatever you want..."

 You silence him before he can finish that sentence, your fingers lacing behind his head to pull him in and crush his lips to yours.

 "I just want you," you say, and are rewarded by his bewildered smile that slowly ebbs in to his usual grin.  You push him back against the ledge of the bath, rising on your knees to pepper his face in kisses.  His hands wander down your sides, thumbs caressing your hips and down your legs as he allows his head to fall back under your ministrations.  Your lips leave a blazing trail down his neck, pausing over his pulse.  With your hands splayed across his chest you can feel his heart beat faster beneath your fingers as you lick and tease along his neck before biting down.  

 " _Ah_!" He hisses in pleasure and his fingers dig in to your skin where he's holding you.  It's not enough to really hurt, you're too busy enjoying the feeling of his growing arousal against your thighs.  Your fingers make quick work of the sash at his waist, slipping the robe off his shoulders.  Without the unnecessary fabric in the way you are able to glide your fingers along his length, a satisfied smirk crossing your lips as he gasps and tenses under your touch.  

 "W-wait..."  Julian pants.  "Are you sure you want to do this?"  He asks, his hand gently grasping your wrist to pause your movements.  His eyes are hooded over as he gazes down at you, biting his lip when you abandon that endeavor in favor of grinding your hips against him instead.

 "Don't you want me?"  You feign uncertainty, grinding against him.

 "Ah- _oh_ _God, yes_.  Y- you know... that. I.do," Julian growls out, struggling to speak.   He is coiled so tightly right now he might snap.  

 "Relax... let me take care of you."  His groan is swallowed up by your lips, his grasp on your wrist relenting, allowing you to brace your hands against his shoulders.  You move against him with ease, your head falling back as his hands roam your body.  His long fingers quickly free you from your own robe, his arms winding around your back and pulling you flush against him.  Your skin is slick against his as he moves to rock against you and match your pace.  It isn't long before you are both are brought to completion, riding out your orgasm against him and biting in to his shoulder, pushing him over the edge.  His fingers tangle and pull at your hair as he cries out in release.

 You are a tangled mess of limbs as you both come back down, and all is quiet save for the combined sound of your breathing returning to normal.  Julian holds you close, enjoying the sensation of still being joined with you.  His mis-matched eyes find your own, a hand coming to cradle your cheek.  His thumb gently strokes against the soft skin of your face and it seems he wants to say something more.  However, it never comes.  In the next instant, the serious look on his face eases in to a grin.

 "If we keep on like this we're going to miss the entire masquerade and we'll never find Lucio," he says.  "As much as I would love to stay here with you like this, we have a job to do."

 "I know," you sigh, stealing one more kiss before you both get out and dressed. 

 When you both emerge from the baths, Portia grins, a knowing look on her face as she leads you back towards the festivities


	2. Chapter 2

It was obvious.

You weren't present in the moment, not really.  He had been working with you long enough to realize when you were lost in your own little world.  A faraway look ghosted over your face.  Your practiced hands were merely going through the motions of treating the patients throughout the day.  Now you were simply cleaning up shop together before you would go home alone again.

The plague was running rampant through the city, things were becoming more and more stressful as you tried and failed to help Julian save the citizens.  What's worse is that Asra had left you behind again.

Only this time, he wasn't coming back.  The magician had made that perfectly clear.  You were offered an ultimatum.  Leave with him or lose him.  He did not want you to die in this place, in his mind, the only solution for survival was to go.  In your mind, leaving the suffering people of the city wasn't an option.  Asra preferred to think that your leaving Julian wasn't the option despite your protestations.  The argument was heated.  You had never fought like this before, never throughout the length of your relationship. There was a time when you would have believed that Asra was your match, in every way... but-

 "Would you pass me a clean rag?"  Julian's voice cuts across the metaphorical distance, effectively freeing you from the prison of your mind.

 "Of course," you reply, startled when his fingers linger against your own.  The rag is quickly forgotten, left to fall to the floor, as he reaches out to grasp your wrist.  His long fingers easily circle around it.

You had been getting a lot closer lately, perhaps another reason why Asra left.  It's not like you had time to really pursue a relationship with either one of them.  With Asra it was all or nothing.  With Julian, in his search for a cure, relationships were not on the top of the priority list.  However, you couldn't deny that he took special notice of you.  It seemed you were really the only one who was able to calm his frantic mind.  Despite the gruesome work you were doing, he always tried to keep the mood light.

"You're gone again," Julian points out.

Your mind is in torn in a million different directions.  You can't quite shake the hurt that follows you around like a dark cloud since Asra left.  Even if your relationship didn't escalate into anything more than a few stolen nights, he was still extremely important to you.

"A- are you alright?"  The doctor asks, his tone unusually serious.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?"  You respond.

"You don't have to do that," he answers back just as quickly, a tired smile coming to his face.

"I... what?"  You say confused.

"You don't have to lie to me," Julian explains, your name rolling across his lips almost tenderly, the hand around your wrist drawing you closer.  You had become used to him invading your personal space on a regular basis.  Working in close proximity and trying to save lives didn't really allow for any distance between the two of you.  You had spent many late nights together.  His shoulder had become a place of respite when you were weary, and it was getting easier for him to tell when you were the one needing a little extra support.

Before you can respond, his arms wrap around you, pulling you flush against his broad chest.

"I'm going to find a cure, I promise, and after I do... things can go back to normal.  We can just focus on running the clinic together again..."

"Julian, I-” Your voice dies away as a hand comes to cradle the back of your head, his fingers gently carding through your hair.  The comforting gesture is almost overwhelming, and tears sting the corners of your eyes.  It had been weeks since Asra had left you, and try as he may, Julian had been more and more distracted lately.  

There's a tremble in your hands as you finally return the embrace, burying you face in his chest to muffle a quiet sob as your fingers fist in the fabric of his jacket.  He seems momentarily alarmed by your tears.  He was never good when it came to those close to him crying.

"Hush... Darling please, don’t cry," he attempts to soothe you, the pet name escaping his inner filter in his haste to stop your tears.  

"I'm sorry, I c-can't stop," you mumble, a wave of exhaustion making you lean heavily against him.

"I- I know, why don't you just… stay with me...?"  He seems a bit nervous about asking you to stay, and you're not positive if it's just because he's afraid of you rejecting him.

Your eyes fall closed as you consider his offer.  You don't want to be alone on this night, or any night for that matter.  It was getting harder and harder to pull yourself away from him to return to your empty home.  

"You... want me to stay?"  You ask quietly, missing the way a blush heats his neck and up his cheeks all the way to the tips of his ears. 

"Yes..." His tone is hesitant.  "I would... uh... well, Darling, I would do anything to see you smiling again.  Do you want to talk about it?"  He presses.

Your voice hitches as you hesitate.

"I- ...  Asra... he... he-” Whatever you were about to say is drowned by your tears, the tremble in your shoulders telling of your attempts to hold it together.

"He left you?"  Julian finishes for you as your voice gets tangled in your throat once again.  "Were you-?"

"N-no... it's not like that," you answer him before he can finish his line of questioning.  "...but he was all I had left."

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Julian replies after a few moments, his shoulders falling in... disappointment?  He eyes are down cast as his hand stills against the back of your head.  "Really, I'm sorry he left.  He's a fool, you know that right?  If I-  if..."  He trails off, his grip around you tightening as if to somehow try and protect you from the hurt you're feeling right now.  He wants to offer you more reassurances, but he can't bring himself to do so.  Until a cure is found nothing can be promised.

"I may not be Asra the great, but you still have me, at least for tonight," a grin tugs up the corner of his lips before faltering.  He's very obviously distressed by your tears.  "Don't fret.  I- I hate to see you crying.  I meant what I said... once I find a way to cure this plague... I'll- I want to be there for you."

His words draw a small smile from your lips and he seems relieved if only for a moment

"That's my girl, now... let's go.  It's not getting any earlier and I don't want to squander what time we do have.  Tell me, what do you want?  What can I do to keep that smile on your face?"

A blush warms your cheeks, and you avert your gaze to the ground.  He could be so oblivious at times, and yet at others, he could be so selfless and caring.   

"I just want you," you whisper, pulling back to meet his uncertain eyes.  It's hard to understand the conflicted look that crosses his face.  It's like he's waited his whole life to hear those words come from your lips, and at the same time he looks horrified by them.  His brow furrows as he captures your chin between his thumb and fore finger, tilting your face up.  Even he's not sure if he should proceed.  He wants to, but is it a good idea?  Probably not, but when has that ever stopped him before?

"May I?"  He asks your permission; his voice is barely above a whisper.

You answer by closing your eyes and leaning up on your toes to try and reach him.  He accommodates you by leaning down.  Your hands grasp the lapels of his jacket as his hands rest on your hips to steady you against him, lips testing and teasing.  You are both left a little breathless when you finally pull away.

"Take me to bed, Julian," you instruct him, your eyes hooded as you press your forehead to his.  Your hands slide up his chest to loop behind his neck.  It doesn't go unnoticed how his breath catches in his throat.  You can feel it as his heart beats faster against you.

"As you wish, my dear," he replies, his strong arms easily sweeping you up.

There is a small room in the back with a bed where, when he wasn’t out drinking his life away, he would stay.  You had spent nights with him before after particularly grueling days, and while looks were shared, hands brushed, comfort offered, things had never escalated to this degree.

You knew he didn't have time for this right now, that he didn't have time for you.  There could be no guarantee of anything more coming from this no matter how you both may have wanted it.

It didn’t really matter though, thoughts of what you both should be focused on were easily forgotten as he gently laid you against the bed.  His eyes search yours for permission one last time before he removes his jacket and gloves.  The cool feeling of his hands trailing up your body and removing your clothes makes you shiver in pleasure and you are impatient to feel the warmth of his body pressed against your own.

Julian chuckles, his voice deep as your hands make quick work of removing the shirt from over his head.

“Patience, my love, I want to savor this,” he whispers in your ear.  You whole body is charged as you feel him hovering over you.  Bit by bit the last of your clothing is discarded on the floor, he lips worshiping your bare skin.

You hum in appreciation as your hands glide over his shoulders and down his back.  You could get lost in his embrace if you’re not careful, and yet, you can think of nothing else you want more.

Your hands trail down his sides, caressing and teasing until you brush against his arousal.  He groans in to your neck where he is focused on leaving his mark on you.  You can feel him tense up, your hips bucking up to meet his. 

“I want you,” you whimper, almost not able to handle it as his nimble fingers work your body.

“ _Say it again_ ,” he practically growls in to your ear, leaving his neck exposed for you to kiss. 

“ _I want you_ ,” you rasp back, you lips pressing against the hollow of his throat before moving to the underside of his jaw.

“Right there, Darling, don’t be afraid to use your teeth,” he coaxes you, a pleased hiss escaping his lips when you comply.  You knead the delicate skin of his neck just below his ear between your teeth.  Your nails dig in to his back, pulling him closer until you are joined together.

Your moans of building pleasure are muffled against his lips, his arm supporting your lower back as your hips grind together.

“ _Julian_ ,” you whine, clinging to him for dear life as he brings you closer to completion, you’re so close.

“Say my name, love, please… say it again…” he begs you, sweat beading on his brow, you can tell he is almost there.

“Julian-!” You cry out as your orgasm hits hard, grinding against him as waves of pleasure dull your other senses entirely.  Hearing the desperation in your voice is enough to drive him over the edge, his arms crushing you to his chest as he reaches his own peak.

* * *

You both knew it was coming.  The plague was raging ever onward, it had even reached the palace.  The Count had sent out a summons to anyone who could help research to find a cure.  You would have gone as well, but there were still people you were treating at the clinic.  You couldn’t bring yourself to abandon them. 

If Julian had known the morning he was to depart to the palace would be the last time he saw you, he would have lingered longer.

The morning sun warmed your face and you turned from it to nestle further in to his arms.  Your clothes had long since been abandoned on the floor and only the blanket from the bed concealed your modesty from the rest of the world.  You had made love again and again, coming to rely on the comfort of one another as you had spent your nights together ever since that first time.  Disappointment fills you as you feel him stirring.  Your reprieve was over.  

Julian whispers your name.

You silence him with a finger to his lips, a sleepy little smile on your face as you pull yourself impossibly closer.

"I know... you have to go, I understand," you reply.  "Find a cure and come back to me.  I’ll be waiting…"

A pained look crosses his face, both of you knowing that right now he couldn't be what you needed him to be.

"I'm sorry, Darling...  I know... I'll do my best, I promise," he whispers, his arms crushing you against him, his face pressed into the juncture of your shoulder and your neck.  His breath is hot against your skin as his lips leave searing kisses behind.

Before you are ready, you find yourself standing at the door of the clinic, a confident smile on your face as you send him off.

"Don't forget to come back for me," you tease him.

"I could never forget you, my dear," Julian responds with his trademark grin.  With one last kiss, he leaves you, looking back one last time before he disappears around the corner. 

The words you both wish you had said are left hanging in the empty air.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> M/F 
> 
> Julian and Asra confront one another and put the past to rest while the apprentice is fast asleep.
> 
> It is implied that Asra had something to do with the hanged man taking Julian's memories of the apprentice, and by implied... I mean I straight out put it in there. Enjoy!

As usual the doctor couldn't sleep, but that didn't stop him from laying with you for awhile.  The sound of his voice eased you in to dreams, and he waited until he was sure you were asleep before gently removing himself from your arms.  He had been pacing for some time and had just settled in to a chair to gaze out the window when he heard the door to your room creak open.  He watches in silence as the magician approaches, only having eyes for you.  He knows he should say something, make his presence known, but something stops him.  He is curious to see what Asra will do, and it is only when the magician reaches for you that Julian interrupts the moment. 

"Hmmm, seems I'm not the only who simply... _can't_ keep away..."  Julian observes, wondering if the look that was on Asra's face before he realized he wasn't alone with you is the same one that mirrors his own when he sees you.  He was able to soak in every detail of Asra's love sick face, longing written in every fine line and feature of his handsome face.  With a quiet scoff, Julian realized he had just viewed what was very most likely his mirror image when it came to dealing with you.  What was it about you that had men and women alike falling at your feet?  How did he get so lucky to have you choose him?  He finds it almost comical as Asra pauses, frozen, caught in the act with his knuckles mere millimeters away from stroking your cheek as you slumbered.  

The magician had clearly been so preoccupied with checking in on you that he did not detect Julian sitting in the corner of your room.  He almost can't help it, he always looses his edge when it comes to you.  Nadia had only informed him that she insisted you and Julian take a short rest before the rest of the events of the masquerade, not that you would be together in the same room.  Still, he should have known.  That night you came home upset from the docks was all the indication he needed to know you were already in too deep.  Fate had a funny way of bringing people back together.  As much as he hated it, he really shouldn't have been surprised.  

"Did you honestly think I wouldn't piece it together?"  Julian asks, and there is a long pause that goes unanswered by the magician.

"In what possible reality would I _not_ want my memories of her?"  Julian pushes, a cold fury radiating from him as he looked to the magician, his fingers bridged together.

"You had forgotten about her long before that," Asra sneered, slowly, regretfully pulling away from you.  While his tone lacked the sting of hatred it had when he spoke to Lucio, it was not friendly in the least.  They had been avoiding each other and this conversation for far too long.

"You had no right," Julian seethed.  "M-maybe I was careless, and maybe I wasn't there when she needed me... but you weren't the only one who lost her..."

"You didn't deserve her then... and now..."  Asra trails off, his tone clipped with pain.  

"She chose me," Julian growled, standing from his chair.  "You left her behind-"

"You left her as well." Asra retorted sharply.

"I left to find a cure... I was going to go back for her-" Julian tried to answer, his eyes falling to the floor in a sorrowful expression as he is cut off once again.

"-she didn't end up dying because of me," Asra bites back.

" _Didn't she_?"  Julian spits out.  "You weren't there... You weren't there to pick up the pieces.  I was." 

The air is electrified with hostility and the hanged man can practically see the magician bristling.  It could go either way at this point.  The doctor’s fists are clenched at his sides, prepared for things to come to blows.  There is a tremble in his shoulders, adrenalin surging through him. It wasn’t as though he believed the magician would hurt you, but he couldn’t help feeling protective of you as you slept away, blissfully unaware of the conflict.  When you made it clear your intentions were to stay with him, he had vowed to never let anyone hurt you or you take you away from him again.

Thankfully it never comes to that as the magician steps back, his shoulders slumping.  The pressure in the room seems to lessen ever so slightly.

"It was hell... living without her," Asra mutters in defeat.  

"You don't have to tell me what it was like," Julian says bitterly.  "I remember now...  I just have one question... and I think you owe me an answer."

Tension still hangs in the air as Asra's eyes lock with Julian's.

"You knew what you were doing... you lead us all down a dangerous path of bargains and deals that we couldn't begin to understand.  I-I never would have chosen to forget her...  I was never going to be willing to give her up... So why?  Why did you interfere?"  Julian asks, all the bravado gone from his voice.

"I had lost everything," Asra replies, his tone frozen over.  "I... blamed you for her death but I at least had my memories of her.  I wasn't willing to share them, least of all with you.  The final stipulation in my bargain with the Magician was for them to work together and have the Hanged Man take your memories of her as well." 

The magician takes a deep breath before continuing.

"I was unfair to her... it was her life, and all I could think about was what I wanted...  I was unfair to you as well in my own way.  I kept secrets from both you and Nadia even though we had started to be friends...  Still, she wouldn't have been able to remember you anyway, not without hurting herself," Asra explains. 

"...but _I_ would have remembered her," Julian whispers brokenly.  "Even if she never remembered... it would have been enough for me."

Julian's statement lingers in the silence, Asra's eyes going wide as he starts to view Julian from a different perspective than before.

"I'm sorry... it seems neither of us were at our best back then," Asra grudgingly relents.  He hesitates for a long time before speaking again.  "I'm not willing to live without her, and neither are you it seems... so for her sake, it's best we move on from this."

"Agreed," Julian replies, the ghost of a grin turns up the corner of his lip as he extends his hand.  Asra pauses, but only for a minute before a stoic smile crosses his face.

"Agreed," the magician repeats, shaking the doctor's hand.  "I hope for her sake you are true to your word Ilya."

"You know... I am... uh... I should apologize... I'm sorry too, about what happened between us...  I was selfish and assumed some things that I shouldn't have... and... for letting her down," Julian says.  "She makes me want to be better, to do better... to be... someone deserving of her..."

"I understand how you feel," Asra responds.

"...Julian?"  Your tired voice, though soft, draws both of their attentions towards you and cuts off anything more that they were going to say.  The doctor's expression eases, his eyes gentle as he moves towards you.  

"Yes, Darling, I'm here," he says softly, turning from Asra completely to sit beside you as you lay on the bed.

The magician closes his eyes against the look of longing and affection that adorns your features whenever Julian is near, a look of resignation and longing appearing on his own face.  He would always love you, even if that meant letting you go.  Quietly, he backs out of the room unnoticed.  

"Did you get any sleep?"  You murmur, grasping Julian's hand and tugging until he is lying next to you.  "Who were you talking to?"  You settle close to him, your head resting on his chest.  You can feel the vibration as he chuckles quietly in response to your question.  It is not unusual for him to be tense, but after his confrontation with Asra he feels as though he is coiled so tightly he could snap at the slightest push. 

"An old friend, we had some business to discuss," Julian answers.  You can still sense the familiar aura of your teacher, perhaps they made amends over their past relationship.  "I thought you might sleep through the party," he jokes.

"...and miss the chance to spend the evening with you?  Never," you reply tilting your chin up so that your lips can meet.

"If you keep this up we might be spending the whole evening in bed," Julian teases, and you can feel the way his lips form in to a smile against your own.  

"Don't tempt me," you reply, sucking his bottom lip between your teeth and biting down just hard enough to cause a little pain.  His sharp intake of breath is all the indication you need to know that you have his attention.

"I could say the same to you," he replies, his arms winding around you and pulling you closer.  The longer he holds you, the more you can feel his body ease and relax against your own.

"Are you alright?"  You ask, your hands gently brushing away the stray hair that had fallen into his eyes.

"Are you worried about me, Darling?"  He laughs quietly, as though the idea of someone caring about his wellbeing is still a foreign concept.  You sigh as his lips brush against your temple.

"I'm always worried about you," is your reply.  The sincerity in your voice causes the good doctor to blush and avert his eyes.

"I-I'm alright, I really wish you wouldn't..." he stutters.  "I don't want you to be upset...  Besides..."  A seductive smirk appears on his face as he leans down to kiss you.  "-I'll be just fine... as long as you're with me."

"How fortuitous that you're stuck with me then," you joke, looping your arms around his neck, your chest pressing against his.  He tries to stifle a moan of longing.  Your skirts are bunched up around your hips as your leg is strewn across his waist.  His cool skin warms against your own as his fingers graze along your thigh. 

Before things can escalate any further, Portia's frantic knocking shatters the moment.  Julian allows his head to fall back against the pillows, a frustrated whine coming from the back of his throat.

"Be right there!"  You call.  

With a quiet giggle you kiss the underside of his jaw, moving tantalizingly slow as you straddle him fully to be able to get to the edge of the bed.  You pause, hovering over him, knowing full well that you are teasing him with your hair wild and flowing over your shoulders.  The cut of your top leaves little to the imagination.  You smile down at him as he firmly grasps your waist, trying to keep you in place.  

"Come along, we have a ghost to catch," you jest, easing yourself out of his hold.

"My love," Julian groans, his cheeks flushed from the contact.  "You will be the death of me yet..."

 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm always open to constructive criticism, but I write mostly just to get the words out of my head. I'm not big on requests, but I have done them in the past.


End file.
